Fall Seven Times
by Lady Koh
Summary: AU. Kaoru is trying to make a new life after a tragic fire, when she meets Kenshin, a man with his own troubled past.  She is drawn to him, but he worrys he may not be able to keep his demons at bay... Chapter 2 up
1. Chapter 1

Hey everybody!

I probably shouldn't be putting this up yet, because I don't have a lot of it written down, and I'm worried I'll get so wrapped up in my real life that I'll forget about it, and won't update for a year, like another story of mine…

But, I'm hoping that that support from readers (mainly in the form of reviews) will give me the motivation I need to ignore my SAT prep book and college apps and write fanfics.

I would, however, like to thank my beta reader, **enchantedsleeper**. She rocks my socks, hard core.

I would also like to let all of you know, for those who may have doubts, that I do not own Rurouni Kenshin. Not even a little bit.

Anyway, on to the story!

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She lay, quietly looking out the window. The rain had turned the sky grey, a soft, meaningless color that made her feel even more depressed. The dark buildings melted into the rain, making it hard to distinguish shapes. It was too early for city lights, the ones that advertised cheap booze and pretty women, but it was early enough that the sun could still be seen, as a sort of white circle in a world of unending bleakness. It was that time of day that it seemed that there might still be enough time for something, but if anything was attempted, it was half hearted because of the realization that it was too late to do anything worthwhile.

The colors of the world, as they began to appear to her, were muted and gentle, drowning in the grey. On the porch of her apartment, she could just see the plant she had tried to grow, twisted and black. Raindrops clung to the railing, trying desperately to hold on before falling three stories to the cold cement.

She was the plant; she was the raindrops. She was desperately trying to cling to something, grasping for something, anything to hold on to, but she was already falling. Her insides were already black and withered. Her soul cried out for help, but was silent with resignation at the same time.

She stopped looking out the window, focusing instead on her hand resting on her pillow. It was cold and pale, but every so often, a finger would twitch involuntarily, then return to its limp position. Her deep blue eyes, unmoving and blank, saw everything, but she didn't have the energy to process it.

She could feel her sadness enveloping her, a cold that would not go away, no matter how tightly she wrapped herself in her blankets. She closed her eyes, refusing to let one more drop of water fall onto her already tear-stained pillow. How could she feel so empty?

"Kaoru?" There came a knock at the door, and she squeezed her eyes tighter, hoping if she just ignored it, it would go away. "Kaoru Kamiya, you open this door right now!"

_No_, she thought. _No, I don't think I will._

"Kaoru, I know you're upset, but you need to get out and do something. It will make you feel better, I promise. Now open the door!"

She sighed and pulled herself out of bed and left the safety of her bedroom. She walked to the door, her blanket still wrapped tightly around her shoulders, and looked through the peephole.

She really didn't need to, but she hoped for a moment she had imagined Misao's voice in the hall. However, she saw her friend standing outside the door, arms crossed, scowling at the peephole.

"You know we're going tonight Kaoru," Her cousin said, tapping her foot. "And I know you're standing there, so just open the damn door already!"

Kaoru complied, removing the chain and turning the handle painstakingly slowly before Misao burst inside.

"God, Kaoru, you're a wreck! And look at this place!" Kaoru looked around her small apartment. It had a kitchen, a living room/dining room, and her bedroom in the back with a bathroom attached.

"What about it?" She croaked.

Misao goggled at her. "Look at it! When's the last time you cleaned?"

Kaoru took another look around. True, there were dirty dishes in the sink, used pots on the stove, and the trash was overflowing, but so what? Sure, she had left plates and glasses in the living room, but why did it matter that they were growing things? And ok, there were dirty clothes all over her bedroom, and she hadn't made her bed in several weeks, but was it really that big a deal?

"I just haven't had the energy-"

"And look at you! You're not even dressed yet! Kaoru, we need to leave in ten minutes! Go take a shower and put on some make up! I'll see if I can find you some clean clothes."

"Misao, I really don't want-"

"Kaoru, we're going. End of story."

"But-"

"Kaoru, shower. Now."

He sat quietly on the hospital bed, staring at the blank white walls. He was an interesting man; he was fairly young, probably in his mid-to late-twenties, with dark red hair and a cross-shaped scar on his left cheek. He wore jeans and a faded red sweatshirt, and beside him sat a black duffle bag, the strap of which he would occasionally fumble with. He appeared to be waiting for something.

The room was spartan, two beds with white hospital sheets and uncomfortable pillows. The door could be locked from the outside, but not the inside, and there was a large glass window, not allowing for much privacy. The doors were normally left open, unless there was a problem with the patient inside.

Other patients meandered about in the commons: some played board games, others watched TV, but most had a heavily medicated look, and all had a dullness and hollowness to their. The man in the room, however, while somewhat subdued, had a twinkle in his eyes and a smile could be seen, ever so briefly, playing on his lips.

There was a knock on the door, and the young man turned around. "Mr. Himura? Mr. Sagara is here. Are you ready to go?" The young doctor stood in the doorway with her clipboard. She looked hopeful, happy almost. Behind her stood a very tall man with spiky hair and a red bandana tied around his head.

"Hey Kenshin. The meter's running, so we need to get outta here." He smiled and Kenshin stood. "You ready?"

"Yeah, I'm ready," he grabbed the duffle and gave the room one last scan for anything he may have missed.

"Let's go then! Hey, you sure you don't wanna go out tonight Megumi?"

"Yes, I'm sure. I've already told you, Sanosuke, I'm going out with some friends tonight. Besides, I don't think Mr. Himura should be left alone on his first night out of the hospital," She took a deep breath. "And I've asked you to please call me Dr. Takani."

"Yeah, and I've asked you to call me Sano," he grinned. "Well, you got my number if you change your mind."

As Sano and Kenshin made their way out of the mental ward, Sano said, "So I thought we'd do something fun tonight to celebrate. Whadaya say?"

"I suppose so," Kenshin said softly.

"Great. How's the fair sound? There's one all this weekend just outside of town, and I figure we could go tonight, if you're feeling up to it."

"That sounds fine to me,"

"Great. Well, I know that foxy doctor of yours won't want you to have too much stimulation, so I figure we can keep this between you and me."

Kenshin nodded as he and Sano walked to the front desk of the hospital to sign out.

The decrepit rides with screaming teenagers. The bright colored lights. Children whose faces were smeared with paint and pink cotton candy. The smell of food deep-fried in fat. Girls who paraded about with a boyfriend around their shoulders and a teddy bear in their arms. She saw it all with glazed eyes. It was as if there was a wall between her mind and the rest of the world, a wall that reality could be seen through, but never touched, never experienced.

"So what do you want to do first? If we eat, we can't go on the rides for a while, because I don't want you guys up-chucking all over me," she blinked, and everything seemed to register again. Megumi and Misao. The fair. She blinked again.

"Umm… why don't we go on the rides then?" Kaoru suggested softly.

"OK, sounds good!" Misao rushed forward to pick out the ride that seemed most likely to kill them, while Megumi huffed.

"Misao, I thought you said we were taking Kaoru for a nice night out to help her unwind," the young doctor said crossly.

"What's your point?" Misao headed towards a ride with flashing lights that labeled it 'The Jack-Knife'. "Oh, let's go on that one!" She cried.

"Well, this isn't particularly nice _or_ relaxing."

"No one said anything about relaxing," Misao replied absentmindedly.

"Don't worry about me Megumi," Kaoru said, knowing she didn't sound at all convincing.

"OK, so it's four tickets a ride, and we have twenty. God, I hate how expensive these things are! That means we have eight left, and you can't buy food with tickets - hey, that reminds me - someone has extra cash for food, right?"

"Misao, stop prattling on and hand the nice man the tickets," Megumi said condescendingly.

The three women were strapped in and in the air faster than Kaoru would have liked. As they began to spin and twirl, she pressed her palms into her eyes to block out the world spinning sickeningly by. Misao made squeals of fear and excitement and Megumi groaned beside her. The ride ended none to soon for the poor doctor, who was looking rather green by the time they returned to solid ground.

Misao seemed not to notice and ran off to find the next method of air born torture.

Kenshin walked around the fair, feeling very miffed. Sano, being a man's man, would be damned if he didn't attempt every show of strength, aim, or a combination of the two that the fair offered. As a result, he was winning several stuffed animals, because the games offered nothing else as prizes. As a result, Kenshin was carrying them around, and, as a result, was mistaken as Sano's girlfriend, which was not such a glorifying experience.

"Sano, I think I'm gonna go on a ride now, ok?" Kenshin said, shifting various stuffed animals so he could see his friend.

Sano simply grunted in reply, and Kenshin headed towards the rides, when he saw a young girl, perhaps four or five, sniffling because she hadn't won a prize at her obviously rigged game. "Here," he said softly, holding out the largest of the stuffed creatures he carried. "I don't need this, that I don't. Go ahead and take it." He smiled as the girl looked up at him with big brown eyes, thumb in her mouth. She grabbed it and grinned, then rushed off to show her mother, disappearing through the crowd.

The rest he deposited randomly; a pink hippo on a trash can lid, a red puppy dog on the railing of a ride, and a giant yellow banana with a doped-up smile by the port-a-potties. He knew Sano wouldn't care; he didn't need stuffed animals.

He went on a few rides, then decided on the Ferris wheel, where the ticket taker shoved him into a basket with a young woman he didn't know, who eyed him suspiciously before commenting on the view of the city from way up here, and look, you can even see a few stars. She seemed very glassy eyed, Kenshin thought, though he found her very beautiful, with her ink painting hair and pale skin glowing in the flashing lights. He wanted to ask her name, but after the look she gave him when she noticed him staring, he felt like he shouldn't.

While, admittedly, a few stars could be seen, it wasn't anything special, and he was beginning to feel rather tired. When they returned to the ground, he thanked the girl for an enjoyable time. She gave him a rather strange look and walked off.

Kenshin yawned and went off to find Sano, who he discovered with a man he did not know.

"Hey, Kenshin, this is my friend Katsu." Katsu nodded toward Kenshin. He runs a political newspaper, and I would tell you more about it, but you look like you're about to pass out, man."

Kenshin nodded. "Hello Katsu. It's nice to meet you." He turned to Sano. "Is there any way we could head back to your place? It's been a long day."

Sano seemed to think for a moment, then replied. "How about you take my car back, and I'll be there later? I haven't seen Katsu in forever, and I wanted to hang with him for a bit."

"Um, Sano? I'm not really supposed to be driving…" Kenshin said softly.

"They only told you that so you can't sue them. It'll be fine. I'll be back in a few hours, ok?" He handed his friend the keys.

Kenshin mumbled something about Sano being irresponsible, but Sano just grinned and waved.

After Kaoru got off the Ferris wheel, she went to find Misao and Megumi by the chair swings, where they all had agreed they'd meet. When the two women finally showed up, Kaoru had made up her mind. She was going home.

"But Kaoru!" Misao pleaded, I won't have a ride home if you leave! And it's so fun here! We haven't even had our deep fried fat yet! Or won any stuffed animals…" At a look from Kaoru, she shut up.

"Thanks a lot guys. I know you were just trying to help, and that means a lot to me, but I really just want to go home. Besides Misao, Megumi has a car, and her place isn't too far from our building, but if you want to come with me, I'm leaving now." Misao wrinkled her nose.

Megumi put her hands on her hips. "Kaoru, you need to get out of that apartment once in a while and have some fun. I know you're hurting, and that's understandable, but you need to let this go."

Kaoru rolled her eyes, refusing to let Megumi finish as she preached this far too often for Kaoru's liking. "Megumi, I'm fine. I really just want to go home now." She gave the two women a curt smile. "Good night."

She walked through the crowds of people, feeling her shoes stick to the grimy ground. When she reached her old (mostly) powder blue Stanza, she groaned. Someone, she supposed while backing out, had knocked off her driver's side mirror and left a large dent in her door. "FUCK!" She yelled, pulling at her hair. She ignored the looks from nearby people. Angrily, she grabbed the receipt that had been stuck under her windshield wiper and looked at the number printed neatly on the back. Just a number. No name.

"Yeah, well screw you too, 536-7446!" She glowered as she threw the door open and set her ipod to angry people music. _Can my life get any more fan-fucking-tastic?_

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Sooo… Just incase you happened to like this, I thought is let you know: 1) I update every Tuesday. If I don't, it's because I'm swamped with real life, and I tend to update the next day. 2) Most of my chapters will not be this long. I was apparently on crack when I wrote this, because it's super long. Normally, I have such a short attention span that I end up keeping things short. Ok, cool.

Please, leave me a review! It will help motivate me, and as a senior in high school, I need all the motivation I can get!

Koh


	2. Chapter 2

Hello everyone! Gah, you're so lucky I even got this up tonight I'm so busy! So while you're enjoying this, I'm going to be desperately pounding out three different essays and finishing my Creative Writing portfolio…

Anyway, I do hope you enjoy it, and as a side not that I forgot to add last time: If anyone knows where I got Kaoru's car in chapter 1, I'll love you forever!

Also, apparently the chapter break things I put in didn't show up last time, so I'll try something different. Sorry for any confusion that may have caused.

Beta'd by the lovely **enchantedsleeper**.

I do not own Rurouni Kenshin.

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Kaoru awoke to glass-shattering music screaming down at her from the floor above. She groaned and pulled her pillow over her head, hoping to block out the noise, but to no avail. Stupid upstairs apartment… She knew who it was; a man by the name of Sagara Sanosuke, who liked to have parties into all hours of the night, blast music at all hours (any music seemed fine, as long as the bass would hurt her fillings), and do just about anything else in the world to deprive poor Kaoru of sleep.

Kaoru grabbed her pillow and threw it angrily at the ceiling, knowing it wouldn't even be registered on the other side, but feeling the need to express her rage nonetheless.

Getting up, she glowered at the ceiling while she opened up the refrigerator door. She had a container of old yogurt, a squishy looking orange and some old Chinese food that she hadn't bothered to throw away. She sighed. She wasn't really hungry anyway; in fact she would much rather to go back to bed, but the infernal music coming down from over head was preventing that.

Walking back into her bedroom, she saw a tattered receipt sitting on her nightstand. "Oh, right," she breathed. The car. The asshole. The number.

She walked to kitchen, where she picked up her phone and punched in the number. The phone rang a total of seven times before going to the machine. "Hey, leave a message," a man's voice said lazily.

"Hi, my name is Kamiya Kaoru, and you ran into my car last night. Since you don't seem to be available," she sighed exasperatedly, "why don't you call me back when you are? My number is 536-2678. Thanks." She hung up and pressed her hands to her eyes. "Oh my god..." she moaned.

Kaoru sat down on the couch, curling her knees to her chest. She knew she should be looking for a job, but she couldn't bring herself to go out looking or read the classifieds. She knew she should take a shower, clean the house up, or get groceries, but she just didn't have the energy.

Suddenly, the phone rang, breaking her trance. She sighed and dragged herself to the counter to answer, hoping for the car attacker. "Hello?"

"Hey, Kao, it's me." Misao piped. "Look, I was just getting my mail, and Mrs. Sakurai - you know, the old lady who works in the office? - told me to let you know that there's a box for you. I think it might be… you know." Misao's voice dropped.

"Oh." Kaoru sighed, not really wanting to retrieve the box. "Misao, you live one floor down from me. Why couldn't you just walk up here and tell me yourself?"

"Oh. Um, I don't know!" She could practically hear Misao smiling. "But do you want me to come with you?"

"No, it's just a box. I mean, it could technically be anything."

"Yeah, I guess you're right. OK, well call me if you want to do something later!" Kaoru grunted in reply and heard a soft click on the other end. That had been Misao's goodbye for the past several weeks, but Kaoru had never taken her up on the offer. She supposed one day her cousin might just stop asking.

Kaoru found herself silently praying for that day.

Rubbing her eyes, she put on a jacket to disguise the fact that she had been too lazy to wear a bra and headed downstairs to the first floor.

When she reached the lobby, Mrs. Sakurai spotted her, the old woman's face crinkling like newspaper as she smiled. "Kaoru-chan, there's a box here for you. I asked Misao to tell you, but you never know with that girl." She made a series of rather dry noises, noises that Kaoru still hadn't confirmed as being either a laugh or a cough.

Kaoru thanked her as she was handed the package, a small box that was slightly larger than a tin of sardines. She sighed as she looked at the return address. There was no mistaking what it was.

When she had returned to her apartment, she made straight for her bed and ripped open the box. A small note inside expressed apologies for taking so long in returning the items enclosed to her and remorse about the fire, but that there was no news regarding how it had started.

Kaoru crumpled the note and peered inside the box. Feeling tears spring to her eyes, tears she thought should have dried up long ago, she took out her father's watch, gently running her hand over the cracked face. It ticked morosely, a simple reminder that though life ended with death, time marched solemnly on.

Next she unfolded his handkerchief, slightly burned at the edges. After that came his wallet. The photo on his driver's license looked so much younger...

Her tears fell on the small photographs of her holding her first bokken, her parents wedding, her mother pushing her on a swing in the park.

Lastly, she took out the thick gold ring she knew had been his wedding band. She studied it for a moment, remembering how he always wore it, long after her mother had forsaken hers. He had always loved her mother despite everything.

Carefully, she took each of her father's effects and put them in her jewelry box. As soon as the lid clicked shut, she began to sob uncontrollably. Curling up in her bed, trying to hide from the world and its horrors, she didn't notice the loud bass pulsing above her, voices below her on the street, or the flashing light on her answering machine.

---

Kaoru awoke several hours later to the ringing of her phone. She tried desperately to ignore it, until Megumi's disembodied voice came floating through her apartment. "Kaoru, pick up your goddamn phone. I know you're sitting in bed right now, listening to this message, and if you do not pick up the phone _right now_, so help me, I will call you until you _do _pick up. I'm giving you to the count of five." There was a pause. "One…two…Five!" There was a click, and seconds later Kaoru's phone began to ring again. Kaoru moaned and stuck her head under her pillow.

"I don't want to get up right now!" she cried.

As if hearing her, Megumi's answering machine voice said, "I don't _care _if you don't want to get up, you _need_ to get up. I have something very important to tell you. Now, pick. Up. The. Phone."

"No." Kaoru knew she sounded like a two year old, and to complete the effect, she stuck her tongue out at the machine.

"Kaoru…" Megumi's voice came as a warning. "Ok, fine then. Just remember you're bringing this on yourself." There was a click, and the phone began to ring again.

It took a grand total of six more calls and five more messages before Kaoru pulled herself out of bed and answered the phone, collapsing in a heap on her sofa. "I hate you."

"OH! Kaoru!" she drawled. "What _have _you been doing?"

"Shut up. What do you want?" She was rather irked at her friend. Why couldn't the older woman just let her wallow in self-pity?

"OK, listen up. You have a job interview tomorrow morning at 11:30. And don't you dare say you can't make it. We both know your plans for tomorrow are nonexistent."

"Look, I appreciate it, but-"

"No, if you appreciated it, you would be on your hands and knees thanking me for being such a good friend. If you appreciated it, you would go."

"Look, it's just that I'm capable of taking care of myself."

"Here's the thing though, Kao. You're not." Megumi sounded very tired. "Misao and I were talking last night after you left, and, well, to be honest, we're both really worried about you. Last night was the first time since you moved here you've been out of your apartment, neither of us is sure when the last time you ate was, and you need a source of income."

Kaoru sighed. "Megumi…"

"Kaoru, I want you to listen to me, and listen good. 11:30, tomorrow. I have a friend who just opened up a coffee shop a few blocks away from your apartment, and he was asking me if I knew anyone who needs a job. Turns out I do."

"Megumi, I'm not in high school. I need a real job, like one with-"

"Like one with benefits, vacation time, health coverage, decent pay? What makes you think you don't get that there? Plus, you get tips."

Megumi sighed. "Besides, it would just be temporary, until you found a better one."

"Look Megumi, I just don't know. Just give me some time to think about it, please?"

Megumi huffed. "Damn it Kao, you aren't doing anything to help yourself out of this mess, and when someone else tries to help you, you push them away! I'm sorry to chew you out like this, but if you aren't there at 11:30 on the dot, I am going to march over to your apartment, drag your skinny butt out of bed and-and-and-" Sputtering and spewing, she finally said, "I don't know what I'll do, but there will be lots of pain, understand?" 

Kaoru nodded meekly, oblivious to the fact that Megumi couldn't actually see her. "Ok, just give me the address. I'll go."

"Good girl!" She could almost hear Megumi smirking as she rattled off the address. "You can't miss it. It's a nice place, so don't worry. Just make sure you take a shower in the morning and wear something decent. I gotta run, but I'll talk to you later! Bye!"

Kaoru hung up the phone and rolled Megumi's words over in her mind. Make sure you take a shower, she had said. Kaoru grimaced; she and her shower were on bad terms. To say that they were the apartment equivalent of Israel and Palestine was an understatement.

The damn thing simply did not know how to function. She had to turn the knob all the way for luke-warm water, which was frequented by random blasts of icy or scalding water. She avoided her shower at all costs.

Even the ones that made her smelly.

---

It was still mid afternoon, but Kaoru felt like going to bed. She had been curled up on her sofa all day watching old movies and drinking generic cola. Her mouth had a funky flavor, and she was sure her body did as well, but she didn't have the energy to fight with the shower right now, so she stayed, picking at the loose threads of her blanket.

Halfway through the The Perfect Storm, she heard a very prominent knock at the door. "Who's there?" she called, too tired to get up to see who it was.

"It is I, your lovely cousin Misao, and I come bearing gifts!"

"What kind of gifts? I'm not getting off my butt unless they're really good!" She yelled.

"Oh, you know. Only your favorite foods. Tangerines, mac and cheese, a full tub of Cherry Garcia ice cream-" Kaoru flung open the door, ready to tackle the younger woman. "Oh, good! I thought that might get your attention."

"Ice cream…" Kaoru drooled.

Misao wagged her finger at Kaoru and shifted her grocery bags. "No Cherry Garcia goodness unless you agree to watch some movies with me."

"Misao, I've been watching movies all day. It's not my fault you weren't here," she whined.

"And unless I'm mistaken, you've been watching crappy-sappy movies all day, which won't do you any good in your situation. Nope, I've got just the thing." And from out of one of her bags, she pulled a huge stack of movies. "No chick flicks or dramas tonight, baby! What you see here is some of the best comedy you will ever find. Now, go get some spoons, and I'll plug one of these in."

Kaoru searched the kitchen for two clean spoons as Misao pondered over what to watch. "Let's see, we've got Zoolander, Dodgeball, Blades of Glory…But if you want something older, I brought Monty Python and the Holy Grail, Blazing Saddles, and Some Like it Hot. Oh, I have Farris Bueller's Day Off downstairs, if you want me to go get that."

Kaoru flopped on to the sofa. "I haven't seen Some Like it Hot in forever!"

"Ok, that sounds good to me!" Misao popped in the old VHS and fast-forwarded through the previews while Kaoru tore open the ice cream carton.

Hours later, the two lay on the floor in a nest of blankets and pillows, ice cream long gone. They peeled tangerines a popped the slices whole, throwing the peels to the side. "I am so sleepy…" Kaoru moaned as she spread herself out like a cat.

"Seriously Kao? 'Cause it's only two a.m." Kaoru groaned and pulled a blanket around herself as Misao tossed a tangerine peel at her face. "You suck."

"Whatever. You can keep watching movies if you like, I'm gonna crash," the older girl mumbled. She crawled up onto the sofa and closed her eyes, vaguely registering something about hamsters and elderberries before she drifted off.

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Some Like It Hot happens to be one of my favorite movies ever, so I must insist that, no matter what, you must find some way to watch it.

Please let me know what you think! I love to get feedback of any kind, since reviews are all the payment I get for this!

Koh


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